10,000 students to graduate from SDSU this weekend

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

SDSU graduation/file photo

10,000 students to graduate from SDSU this weekend

SDSU graduation/file photo

SAN DIEGO — More than 10,000 San Diego State University students will graduate this weekend in seven commencement ceremonies beginning Friday and continuing through Sunday in Viejas Arena on campus, school officials said.

The College of Sciences will host the largest ceremony, honoring 1,778 degree candidates Friday. The smallest ceremony is for the College of Engineering on Saturday, with 849 degrees being handed out.

A long-time civic leader, a civil rights activist and an advocate for San Diego’s poorest residents will receive honorary doctor of humane letters degrees from SDSU during the ceremonies. All three honorees are alumni who have served the San Diego region for decades in multiple capacities, according to White.

Andrea Skorepa from the Class of 1971 will receive an honorary doctorate from the College of Arts and Letters at Friday’s commencement ceremony. Harold Brown of the Class of 1959 will be recognized at the Fowler College of Business commencement ceremony on Saturday. And Jack McGrory of the Class of 1976 will be honored at the College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts commencement ceremony on Sunday.

“As city manager, McGrory placed high value on public-private partnerships, playing an important role in the development of Petco Park, which is linked to the redevelopment of East Village,” White said. “His leadership of the City Heights Initiative as chair and CEO of the Price Legacy Corporation resulted in a comprehensive redevelopment of that neighborhood.”

Brown is a champion of civil rights, a conservator of African American history and a lifelong crusader on behalf of San Diego’s underrepresented communities. The first African-American administrator at SDSU, he created a certificate program in community economic development within the Fowler College of Business.

“A powerhouse community activist, Skorepa has served families in San Ysidro and the South Bay for 36 years as president and CEO of Casa Familiar,” White said. “Her dedicated leadership grew the nonprofit organization from nine employees, no assets and a $60,000 budget to a thriving institution with 34 employees, $8.1 million in assets and a budget of $1.7 million.”

The seven commencement ceremonies being held at Viejas Arena on campus include:

— College of Arts and Letters, 10 a.m. Friday.

— College of Sciences, 3 p.m. Friday.

— Fowler College of Business, 8 a.m. Saturday.

— College of Health and Human Services, 1 p.m. Saturday.

— College of Engineering, 5:30 p.m. Saturday.

— College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts, 9 a.m. Sunday.

— College of Education and the Division of Undergraduate Studies, 2 p.m. Sunday.